The Dead Girl (2006) User Reviews

Not a revolutionary experience but great acting and strong script

[laraemeadows · 8/10 · 6 February 2007]

"The Dead Girl", written and directed by Karen Moncrieff, is a haunting story of how six women are affected by the gruesome, untimely death of one young woman. Each affected woman is suffering in their own emotional prison. Arden, Leah, Beverly, Ruth, Rosetta, and Melora all gain new life and opportunity because of their connection to the dead girl.

Arden, played by Toni Collette, lives and cares for her abusive mother. Arden's mother, Piper Laurie's character, has such an emotional hold on Arden that she doesn't even feel that she can go on a date with out being humiliated. Arden finds the dead girl on her family's land, and for some reason it gives her new courage to explore a life outside her mother's grasp. After the girl is removed from Arden's family stead, she is taken to the local Medical Examiners Office.

The Examiner's intern, Leah, Rose Byrne's character, examines her and believes that she is her long lost sister, missing for 15 years. Struggling to get past her grief since her sister left, believing she is dead finally allows her to get on with her life stalled for so long. She and her mother, Beverley, played by Mary Steenburgen, and father, Bruce Davidson's character, have different methods for struggling with the past. She goes on a date with Derek, played by James Franko, and begins down the road away from her missing sister and into a life of her own!

Mary Beth Hurt plays Ruth, a woman trapped in her marriage to an absent bastard by her strong religious convictions. Even after she threatens her husband, Carl, Nick Searcy's character, for being gone all the time and for sleeping around, she is conflicted about leaving him. Of all the characters, she is the most pitiful and deplorable. Her religion stunts her common sense, her past cuts it down completely. At the end of her story I wanted to punch her in the face. Ruth is my favorite character.

After the dead girl is identified, her mother, Melora, comes to collect and identify her body. Melora, played by Marsha Gay Harden, finds about her daughter, who ran away years ago, from her girlfriend and co-worker, Rosetta. Together Rosetta, Kerry Washington's character, and Melora collect the remnants of what's left of her daughter's life. Melora's is obviously pained by her daughter's death but her emotions become unraveled when she learns why her daughter left.

Finally we meet Brittany Murphy's character, Krista. Krista is the dead girl. Her sad and tragic life can really only lead to Arden's family farm. Choices she made and choices people made for her are equally gut-punching and in the end, who made which decision doesn't matter anymore. All that matters is she died.

The writing in "The Dead Girl" leaves you dumbstruck and in pain. It's as if Karen Moncrieff drew a line for each of the characters starting years before the dead girl and stretching years in the future. The dead girl is the point where each of the lines intersect and change direction. At first it seems the women's lives bear no similarities to each other but their differences are only as deep as a coat of paint. Each of them is shackled to the past, tied away from the potential their future holds. They tug on their restraints, waiting for anything to break them free. Each of the stories is full of unspoken fear and a frightening depth.

All of the acting in "The Dead Girl" is astoundingly disquieting. Each of the performances is compelling and all of the actors were completely entrenched in character. Marsha Gay Harden's performance is the shining star of this film. Her character is a well mannered, suburban, house wife who learns in the probably the most gut wrenching way about her misjudgments and bad decisions. In a scene where she learns how her bad decision making has hurt her daughter, the surprise and rush of emotion completely changed my view of the character. Her utter desperation and painful honesty made me wish I were in the room to console her.

Each of the character's stories is shot in slightly different ways. The difference is subtle, but if you pay attention, you can see it. There is nothing exceptional about the cinematography, but it isn't a big budget movie either.

The Dead Girl won't be a revolutionary experience for anyone but it is one to see if you desire a strong plot and noteworthy acting.

A Nutshell Review: The Dead Girl

[DICK STEEL · 8/10 · 30 September 2007]

The story brought memories of an old television cult series called Twin Peaks. A dead, blonde girl's body is being discovered in the grasslands of an idyllic village, and this provides the catalyst for the movie as the plot unravels to tell of the stories that centers around that discovery. In summary, it had a total of 5 short stories all inter-weaved through a fragmented timeline, and a host of characters in those stories who have one way or another, played a part in the girl's life, during when she was alive, and after.

The Stranger stars Toni Collette as the woman who discovered the body, and how she gets thrust into the media limelight, yet yearning for that freedom to flee from her domineering mother. The Sister tells of a pathologist's inability to fight on and continue her family's believe that her missing sister is still out there somewhere, and not to throw in the towel and give up hope. The Wife will manage to rile you up, with the story of a neglected wife, and her hopes for reconciling with her estranged husband, who prefers gallivanting late at night to spending time with her, and of course, with her decision to protect her husband's secrets to losing him for sure altogether when revealed. And The Mother reminds you that a mother's love knows no bounds. Hurt by her daughter's disappearance, the worse case scenario happens, and Mum has got to heal old wounds. It's a touching short, and I thought one of the most powerful amongst the rest. And rounding it up, like the last pieces of a jigsaw, is The Dead Girl's story, where we see a foul mouthed Brittany Murphy bringing it all on.

The movie had excellent performances all round by the ensemble cast, and it doesn't have any big bang moments to shock and awe. It's a dramatic story, rather than a mystery- thriller-whodunnit. I was glad that it didn't go down the torture porn route, although it could have, but didn't need to. Leaving it where it is will already allow your imagination to run wild what the outcome will be. However, this might serve as a let down to some as it might seem that it failed to want to bridge the missing gap in the timeline. Fragmented timeline and multiple, parallel stories do seem to be the rage these days (Babel anyone?), but it all boils down to how much of a story you can make out of a single drop in the pond. That's what The Dead Girl feels like, with the stories the inevitable ripples that fan out.

You Are My Sunshine looks like a song very popularly used in end credits, and so far I had thought that it was a simple childhood nursery song. But when used in this context, it had a profound depth telling of longing and missing, that everyone has their own sunshine that they hold very dear to. Recommended movie, especially if you're into the fragmented timeline fad.

Great actors doing good work

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 25 February 2014]

Arden (Toni Collette) is a painfully shy and isolated living her cruel bed ridden mother (Piper Laurie). One day she finds a dead girl in her yard. She becomes the talk of the town and is asked out by the creepy bag boy Rudy (Giovanni Ribisi).

Leah (Rose Byrne) is a dutiful fragile daughter. Her parents (Mary Steenburgen, Bruce Davison) is still searching for their missing daughter for 15 years. Leah suffers from the oppressive need to find her sister.

Ruth (Mary Beth Hurt) and Carl (Nick Searcy) are a fighting couple with a storage place. She finds some troubling things in one of the storage lockers.

Melora (Marcia Gay Harden) has come to L.A. looking for her runaway daughter last seen as a 16 year old Krista (Brittany Murphy). She befriends Krista's former roommate Rosetta (Kerry Washington).

Usually a multi-storyline movie like this can be a problem. The common trouble happens when some of the story really disappoints. The good news for this movie is that every story is compelling with great actors. The movie starts with the amazing Toni Collette and never really declines in the class of acting. Director/writer Karen Moncrieff has crafted a very simple story. It's the powerful acting that elevates the movie.

Grim set of narratives will hit the spot if you are in the mood

[oneloveall · 6/10 · 12 May 2007]

An atmospheric sextuplet of stories revolving around The Dead Girl makes for an intriguing, if unnecessary diversion from your standard murder mystery. Starting with this basic concept, Karen Moncrieff, the writer and director, will show how those associated with this corpse react around the event. In loosely connected stories, this body becomes either foreground or background material to each scenario's more personal, character-based meditations. What turns out is an interesting and eerie slice of independent ensemble drama, more effective as distinct portions then the muddied whole it will add into.

Those going into the movie expecting a hard fought thriller will definitely be disappointed, but people who enjoy more low key fair might have found their sleeper hit of the moment. The Dead Girl reeks of professionally depressive performances. No more ensemble work then a collection of different short films thrown together, casting here nevertheless will make this feature far more attractive then it could have been. Everyone is at their subtly bleak best, and right from the start with Toni Collette's haunted presence one knows the film will be a showcase of silence and darkness from a worthy cast, perhaps at the expense of things like facts and plot.

Those who will enjoy The Dead Girl most are those who bask in cinematic gray areas. Nothing will attempt to be solved or moralized by detailing the grim reality of this murder. Instead viewers have six dark little tales which are more character study then interlocking mystery. For sheer foreboding ambiance alone, The Dead Girl is worth a watch; film's creepiest fade out in recent memory should distinctly heighten a lasting aftertaste.

Brittany Murphy was remarkable

[KineticSeoul · 7/10 · 10 October 2009]

This movie is about five different people finding out about the dead girl and is dividing into 5 chapters. The Stranger, The Daughter, The Mother, The Wife, and finally The Dead Girl. and it mostly revolves around the dead girl and how people in the movie deal with it since related people are interwoven around the murder of the dead girl played by Brittany Murphy who does a great job with the role that is given to her on the last act. Although every actor and actresses bring great acting to this movie, each chapter is shot a bit differently, the difference is slight but if you pay attention to the movie you can see it, which is actually a good thing. This is a dark tale and has a dark atmosphere to it but is still intriguing at the same time, this was like watching a puzzle get put together with every chapter adding a piece to the mystery. But if your expecting a movie that is a thriller, you will be disappointed cause this movie is far from being a thriller. But what it is, is a haunting and intriguing film that is worth checking out. Every actor and actress put on a good show without going over the top, and I found that Brittany Murphy's performance was noteworthy.

7.5/10

The Death Of A Girl Shakes Other Lives

[Chrysanthepop · 26 June 2011]

Karen Moncrieff's 'The Dead Girl' tells the harrowing tale of five women whose fractured lives are affected by the discovery of a dead girl. There's the fragile and abused Arden (Toni Collette) who discovers the body, the tormented Leah (Rose Byrne) the medical examiner of the body, frustrated Ruth (Mary-Beth Hurt), the wife of the man who murdered the girl, a concerned Melora, mother of the dead girl and the title girl (Brittany Murphy) desperate to get presents to her daughter.

Moncrief is a fine storyteller and she does it with profound depth. She grabs the viewers attention from the very beginning and manages to keep the film under control without sensationalizing the story. Her subtle writing and direction are exceptional. She divides the story into five chapters and she takes the method of non-linear storytelling to a new level. At first she starts off by showing us the perspective of the stranger who is only linked to the girl in the title because she found her mutilated body. Then she shows us the point of view of the medical examiner, followed by the killer's wife, mother and the girl in question. There is a lyrical quality in the way these five sad stories are portrayed. The score is efficiently used.

'The Dead Girl' additionally shines with one of the finest ensembles that delivers poignant performances. Toni Collette, Rose Byrne, Marcia Gay Harden, Piper Laurie, Mary Beth Hurt, Brittany Murphy, Kerry Washington, Mary Steenburgen, James Franco, Josh Brolin and Giovanni Ribisi are astonishing in their portrayal of broken people.

'The Dead Girl' is a frightening, sad, poignant and beautifully crafted little film about shattered lives and their longing for something different. The haunting fade-out in the end lingers in the questioning mind.

Dark comment on the hidden strength of women

[drexelspivey · 7/10 · 27 February 2007]

"The Dead Girl" A film review by Brian Murphy "The Dead Girl," writer/director Karen Moncrieff's (a former television actress and director) penetrating new film, connects five women affected by the death of a young woman (Brittany Murphy). The film, split up into five chapters, reads like a book, with each chapter examining the changes in their lives brought about by the brutal murder of someone most of them have never met.

"The Stranger," "The Sister," "The Wife," "The Mother" and "The Dead Girl" comprise a fascinating, multiple character study of abused, confused and repressed women. The murdered woman winds up being an altruistic, sacrificial lamb that alters the course of others for better and for worse.

Ms. Moncrieff has assembled a stellar cast. Toni Collette ("Little Miss Sunshine") shines as Arden, an emotionally bruised daughter, isolated from society by her abusive, invalid mother. After discovering the corpse of a young woman, her world is turned upside down; the media hounds her, she is romantically pursued by a creepy grocery clerk (the underrated Giovanni Ribisi), and she rebels against her passive nature, lashing out at a mother (Piper Laurie) who, referring to her deceased brother, remarks, "He (God) should have taken you instead!" Rose Byrne is phenomenal as Leah, a young woman desperately searching for a way to put the 15-year disappearance of her sister to rest. While her mother (Mary Steenburgen) still posts age-enhanced pictures of her daughter, desperately hoping for her return, Leah wishes for her family to accept the fact that her sister must be dead, in order for them all to move on. Her occupation as a coroner perfectly corresponds to her character. When she comes across the corpse that Arden discovered, she immediately finds a birthmark similar to that of her sister. Finally feeling the closure she has been seeking, Leah embarks on a life separate from work and her therapist's office. She responds to the advances of slightly creepy coworker Derek (James Franco of "Spiderman"), and has sex in a scene Ms. Moncrieff deftly designed to express release.

Mary Beth Hurt (as Ruth,) and Marcia Gay Harden ("Pollock,") present two antithetical characters seeking redemption for, perhaps, their denial. Ruth, a religious, forgotten wife, believes her despondent husband may be a serial killer, while Harden's Melora is the mother of a woman possibly murdered by Ruth's husband. Ultimately, their choices define them. Ruth chooses to remain in denial, while Melora seeks the cause of her daughter's decision to run away. In the end, one is lost and haunted, while the other earns redemption.

Not to be forgotten, Brittany Murphy ("8 Mile"), as Krista (a.k.a. "The Dead Girl") gives a spectacular performance that serves as the essential footnote to Moncrieff's film. Murphy delivers as a junkie prostitute who, despite her troubled past, is still a loving mother.

Karen Moncrieff's script may have difficulty appealing to a mass male audience. Her script is gender-centric, studying the growth or regression of several female leads. The few male characters involved are either initially or ultimately presented as unsympathetic, withdrawn, or potential sources of violence. This does not exclude children, like the young boy who punches his sister in the arm. Men are not definitively portrayed as evil, but the film does cast a wary glare in their direction.

However, Ms. Moncrieff's writing is insightful, and her direction is expressive. She uses a myriad of close-ups to showcase the talents of her fine ensemble cast and also to express a claustrophobic tone-Her women are often emotionally stunted, cornered by men, or voluntarily succumb to their own fears. Their transitions define this empathetic yet brutally honest film.

"What was it like, I mean, finding that DEAD GIRL?"

[screenwriter-14 · 7/10 · 29 December 2006]

THE DEAD GIRL has an ensemble cast that makes each story segment fit into the other and Toni Collette, once again, gives a knock out performance, with Giovanni Ribisi, another stand out in this very dark and dramatic story in which Brittany Murphy shines in a character which once again is reminiscent of the tragic SHERRY BABY and gives the dead girl a feeling of life which she never really had.

The dark colors in the photography and dialog fit each scene and made all the characters stand out. What was really clever was how the writer tied the different segments into finding and identifying the dead girl and how the characters were each in their own way, rather bleak and very dark "Shakespearean" men and women all thrown into this witch's kettle of death and tragedy.

I salute the independent film festival for honoring THE DEAD GIRL in 2007 as this very dark tale might have trouble resonating with a wider audience. But to watch such a talented group of actors in THE DEAD GIRL should be recommended for any future actor.

"The Dead Girl" is full of life

[autobahnsau · 9/10 · 8 November 2006]

Saw a screening at a film fest in Los Angeles last night and was completely blown away. The quiet intensity of the film draws out the audiences emotions without hitting them over the head with obvious messages. Everything in this film is complex and complicated- even the cooking of a T.V. dinner. The subtle direction and overwhelming combination of acting, cinematography and screenplay lets the film build mystery upon mystery drawing the viewer to its inevitable conclusion. Restating the plot would give too much away, but the lines between life and death and their definitions are definitely called into question in this film. The acting in this film is of the "Oscars all-around" caliber and not one performance is wasted or without passion and skill. Brittany Murphy and Kerry Washington are so incredible you wonder why these women aren't getting more attention. Murphy particularly shines here as a teenage girl trying to control the downward spiral of her life. Marcia Gay Harden is brilliant as usual giving us a multi-layered character that could easily have been overplayed. Mary Beth Hurt offers a stunning and revealing portrait of a deeply conflicted character. Giovanni Ribisi and James Franco give surprising support playing against their normal "type". The cinematography is lushly beautiful, yet also edgy and raw- all a perfect complement to the screenplay. The opening scenes featuring the desert are gripping and breathtaking. They mark a fantastic contrast to the rest of the film. Karen Moncrieff's direction deftly weaves the characters together, revealing small pieces of a mystery bit by bit, never stealing time from the actors and allowing this stellar cast to really shine. If you loved "In The Bedroom" this has a similar pace and feel. This film will knock you sideways while watching it and then will linger with you for days to come.

Murder and the Lives it Affects

[view_and_review · 6/10 · 8 March 2022]

"The Dead Girl" is an anthology centered around a murdered young lady. There's the stranger who found her (Toni Collette), the medical examiner who believed she was her sister (Rose Byrne), the wife of the killer (Mary Beth Hurt), the mother of the dead girl (Marcia Gay Harden), and the victim herself (Brittany Murphy). We get five separate interconnecting stories in 85 minutes.

The movie had some notable faces. Including the aforementioned there was Josh Brolin, Kerry Washington, Giovanni Ribisi, James Franco, Mary Steenburgen, and Piper Laurie. What the movie didn't have was a real attention grabbing plot. It wasn't a murder mystery in the traditional sense nor was it a thriller. Eventually we find out who the murderer is, but it wasn't as though he was being kept secret, it just wasn't his turn to be shown. No one was pursuing him and it seemed no one cared except the family of the dead girl.

So what do you get out of it? You get a montage of how murder affects the lives of different people. It made Anden (Toni Collette) a local celebrity for finding her. It made Leah (Rose Byrne) a wreck because she thought the woman was her missing sister. It made the killer's wife decide to burn the evidence to protect her husband. It destroyed the victim's mother, and the girl, of course, had her life cut short.

This was a unique way of approaching the issue even if I think the movie could've been better. It seemed a bit too random for me as the movie dropped one subject and picked up another.

Starz.

Great acting and directing

[atosennim · 5/10 · 21 May 2007]

I agree with the people who gave a low score because there was no conclusion. If you like unresolved films then fine. I don't. I thought the acting and directing were top notch. But when the movie ended I was actually surprised and highly disappointed. I go to the movies to be entertained and ultimately satisfied that there has been some resolution. Bad or good doesn't matter but there is some resolution. I obviously prefer to see a hero win. But if you make a point with the hero losing then I'm fine with it. This movie has no ending. So it gets an average score. Pity as it could have been a really great movie had there been a conclusion with an impact.

The Search for Ways to Fill Holes in the Soul

[gradyharp · 10/10 · 17 May 2007]

Karen Moncrief has written and directed this terrifying, searching, agonizing, and exceptionally fine story of the responses of five different people to the discovery of a dead girl. By dividing her story into chapters named after The Stranger, The Daughter, The Mother, The Wife, The Sister, and The Dead Girl she offers us fully realized characters, each of whom is affected by the opening discovery of a mutilated young dead girl's body. The technique of non-linear film is not new, but Moncrief raises it to a new, powerful level, a fact that makes this film one of the more sophisticated and successful of the past few years.

Arden (Toni Collette) is a homely frail girl who accidentally discovers the dead girl, taking a necklace from the corpse before reporting the discovery to the police. She is a caretaker for an invalid, foul-mouthed cruel mother (Piper Laurie) who berates Arden for being so ugly and for involving them in a murder case. Arden flees, meets The Stranger Rudy (Giovanni Ribisi), a tattooed, scary appearing guy who is attracted to Arden because she appears so innocent. He courts her with tales of serial killer manners and yet eventually gains Arden's fractured self-perception trust with physical contact. The next chapter introduces Leah (Rose Byrne) who works with Derek (James Franco) in the mortuary where the dead girl's body has been deposited for autopsy. Leah discovers markings on the dead girl that convince her this is the sister who has been missing for 15 years, a fact that her parents (Mary Steenburgen and Bruce Davison) refuse to accept. Leah's tenuous hold on reality is altered by Derek's consolation and physical attention.

The Wife episode offers a view of Mary (Mary Beth Hurt) and Carl (Nick Searcy), a married couple with mutual distrust: Mary knows Carl has flings with prostitutes while Carl feels Mary is too controlling. Mary discovers a chest of torn bloody underwear in one of their business Storage Containers, connects the items with Carl in a suspicion that Carl may be related to the death of the dead girl, and burns them. In The Mother we finally meet the true mother Melora (Marcia Gay Harden) of the dead girl Kritsta (Britanny Murphy) as she traces the clues from the body to a seedy motel where she meets Rosetta (Kerry Washington), Krista's roommate and lover, only to discover that the dead Krista ran away from home to become a prostitute and drug addict in response to a childhood abuse problem with her father. Melora is informed that Krista has an illegitimate three-year-old daughter Ashley whom Krista loved and Melora seeks to care for the only remains of the dead girl - her granddaughter and her lover.

This film beams with brilliant performances: Collette, Harden, Byrne, Laurie, Hurt, Searcy, Washington, Steenburgen, Franco and Ribisi are poignant in their depiction of damaged people whose lives are altered by the Dead Girl. This is ensemble acting of the finest category. The production values are strong and the director's control of what could have been a meandering saga is firm and keeps the story from becoming sensationalized. This is yet another brilliant little film that deserves a very wide audience. Grady Harp

Changes in Entwined Lives

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 23 October 2008]

When the middle-aged Arden (Tony Collette) finds the dead body of a young woman dumped in her property in the rural area in Los Angeles, she calls the police and becomes famous in the local town. While shopping in the supermarket, Arden meets the employee Rudy (Giovanni Ribisi) that invites her for a date. Arden accepts the invitation of the stranger and faces her dominating abusive mother and moving from her home to a new town. While preparing the body to the autopsy in the morgue, the depressive coroner Leah (Rose Byrne) believes she is her sister missing for fifteen years, and she accepts for the first time the invitation for a party in the house of her colleague Derek (James Franco). She changes her behavior and attitude; however, when she discovers that the girl is actually called Krista, she tries to convince her mother Beverly (Mary Steenburgen) to accept that her sister is dead. Meanwhile, an old woman finds evidences in the storage where her husband works that he may be a serial killer. The mother of Krista, Melora (Marcia Gay Harden), goes to the precinct and snoops on the documentation the last address of her daughter. She visits the place and meets the roommate of Krista, the prostitute Rosetta (Kerry Washington), and discovers that she has a three year-old granddaughter, Ashley (Elizabeth Pernoll). Last but not the least, the last day of Krista (Brittany Murphy) is disclosed including the identity of her killer.

"The Dead Girl" is an original low-budget movie, with a screenplay divided in five segments named: "The Stranger", "The Sister", "The Wife", "The Mother" and "The Dead Girl". The story is very simple and real, with great performances and direction, giving full credibility to the plot relative to changes in entwined lives triggered by the discovery of a corpse of a young woman. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Garota Morta" ("The Dead Girl")

Great cast probably thought they were getting into an Art piece

[leesimon-26357 · 3/10 · 9 October 2021]

I didn't like this on any level. I didn't like the characters, the writing, the story development, or any of the direction.

This movie tried so hard to be brooding, dark, and thoughtful, but fell short on its attempt to be a Film Noir. It was tepidly gray at best. The cast did their best, and no shade on any of their performances.

**Not a real spoiler, but...** Toni Colette, my dear amazing actress: This was not the movie for which to do full frontal.

I'd say definitely skip it. I will never, ever see it again. This is the kind of movie that even if it came on TV, I would turn the TV off and go do some cleaning.

Mixed feelings about this one.

[deloudelouvain · 6/10 · 3 August 2018]

I think most of the reviewers got a bit carried away here on IMDb, making it look like The Dead Girl was one of the best movies ever. I don't say it was a bad movie, not at all, it's certainly worth a watch, but it's not a masterpiece either. The acting is good, from everybody, but I didn't really like the concept of the story telling. For example if you like Toni Collette, like I do, you better be prepared watching her role in the beginning and then never see her again. I don't think that was a smart move in this movie. But that's how this movie works, you get to watch small independent stories about the event. I would have scored it a bit higher if it was not for the ending that I thought was weak. Other than that it's not a bad movie but we've all seen better.

An unpredictable story and a luxurious cast with excellent performances give this film a very remarkable quality.

[filipemanuelneto · 7/10 · 19 September 2021]

I was expecting something else when I decided to see this movie. Anyone who has the patience and kindness to read other reviews of mine will realize, perhaps, that I rarely read or try to know something about a film before watching it, so as not to spoil the first impression too much, and only when I write about it is it that I try to read something to better document myself and not write many nonsense, among the many that I am writing, to the horror of those who know more than I do. So I was surprised to see the style of film I found, which reminded me a little of some Tarantino films (the strong images, the raw violence, the subdivision into chapters, etc.). It was an interesting resource from director Karen Moncrieff, and it worked very well.

The script is, along with the powerful interpretations of the cast, the best thing about the film. Unpredictable until the end, it works very well, and the segmentation of the story into chapters means that certain information only arrives in portions until the end, with the last chapter being the one where the others will all fit together. Therefore, it is not easy to summarize the story: we have several women, who do not know each other, but whose lives will be affected by the same crime: the death of a young prostitute.

The actors are good, and we have some familiar names here. Toni Collette is the first to enter the scene, and she really is amazing in her character, an extremely unsocial young woman who lives under the control of an elderly and abusive mother, played by an equally great Piper Laurie. Giovanni Ribisi, another well-known name, was pleasantly somber. Rose Byrne, the protagonist of the second frame of the film, also doesn't let us down by the way she gives her character. In fact, she is perhaps the most controversial character in the film, as she is a young woman who has lived all her life in the shadow of an absent sister, who has disappeared and is anxiously sought after by her family. She is eager to be freed from this page of her life, even if it is necessary to give her sister for dead. This eagerness puts her on a collision course with her mother, played by Mary Steenburgen, who, like any mother, refuses to accept this hypothesis. Much less remarkable or interesting is the contribution of Mary Beth Hurt. I thought the actress was too aged, I would have liked to see her more youthful, I think the character could handle it well. Marcia Gay Harden gives us the touching portrait of the dead girl's mother, emotional and devastated by the loss, but she doesn't go beyond that register. Brittany Murphy also shined in giving her character a dose of irreverence and ill-mannered rebellion, tempered by an evident maternal love. For me, it's only Kerry Washington who looked bad in this film, not because of the actress's work, which is impeccable, but because of the rude and unjustifiably disgusted way in which the character behaves with everything and everyone.

On a technical level, the film doesn't stand out. It has regular cinematography, good color and light. Also, the sets or costumes are not worthy of relevant mention, they only fulfill their role. The film's soundtrack is virtually non-existent, but what little there is works well. What I would really highlight on the positive side here is the post-production work, the harmony with which the various parts of the film come together, giving the film a pleasant rhythm, without losses or delays, without becoming heavy.

Mainly "dark" movie, a bit unusual, but interesting.

[TxMike · 14 January 2009]

The first 15 or 20 minutes of this movie sets the tone as the characters are not very attractive, do not behave in very attractive manners, and that part of the movie is filmed in a dark style. I found myself wondering where all that was headed and whether I should even continue watching. Afterwards it picked up a bit and found the whole product interesting but not very rewarding.

Toni Collette is Arden, with little self-confidence and taking care of her very difficult mother, the veteran of 1950s movies, Piper Laurie as Arden's Mother. Arden is wandering in a field behind the house and comes upon a body, the "Dead Girl" of the movie's title.

After that the police get involved, and we begin to be introduced to the various other characters who we eventually have a connection with the dead girl. One of those is forensic technician Rose Byrne as Leah, who thinks the dead girl might be her sister who went missing some years back. Leah is still depressed over not finding resolution to her sister's disappearance.

Brittany Murphy turns out to be the dead girl and her mother finally realizes that. She had had a falling out some years before and had left home. The last part of the movie is actually what happened in the days before the dead girl was found.

SPOILERS: When the mother meets the old roommate of her daughter, she finds out that there is a child, a cute blond granddaughter. She takes the girl with her, presumably to raise her. She finds out that her daughter had left because her stepfather was sexually abusing her, got herself into prostitution, and on the day she died was going to visit her daughter for her third birthday. The motorcycle she had borrowed had died on the side of the road at night, be got a ride with a guy who turned out to be a serial killer.

Semi-innovative feminist film

[fredrikgunerius · 7/10 · 16 August 2023]

Five seemingly diverging stories are more or less brought together through characters who are in one way or another affected by the death of the titular character in this semi-innovative feminist film by writer/director Karen Moncrieff. Not all the segments work equally well individually - some of them have a few strangely unhandled loose ends - but there is power in the story about Brittany Murphy's character, which concludes the film effectively. The late Murphy also gives arguably the best of the film's many brilliant performances, one of the most powerful of her career. Among other talented actresses doing great work are Toni Colette, Mary Beth Hurt and Kerry Washington in three of the film's other segments. It's a remarkable ensemble of character actors Moncrieff has been able to assemble here. Perhaps the feeling of unfulfillment which slightly mars the film could have been avoided had Moncrieff had more time, freedom or experience (or any applicable combination of the three) to bring her film to completion.

Disturbing

[jjsoltis · 6/10 · 27 May 2021]

I found it depressing and disturbing. Great acting. Great actors. Sad story.

My Only Sunshine

[ferguson-6 · 8/10 · 4 March 2007]

Greetings again from the darkness. Who is Karen Moncrief and where did she come from? The writer/director of this very interesting, complex "little" depressing film really took me by surprise with a tremendous script and creatively photographed look at how 5 stories intersect thanks to one dead body found in a field. I know most are already thinking "Crash" or "Babel", but this film is much more intimate and personal than either of those two big budget films.

The story begins with emotionally bankrupt Toni Collette finding the body in a field near the home she shares with her physically invalid, emotionally abusing mother, played with brimstone by Piper Laurie (who has quite the history of tough love Mom's!). The depths of Collette's loneliness are played out in one of the most painful first kisses ever filmed on her date with Giovanni Ribisi.

On the surface, what appears to be the most "normal" family, we get the lovely Rose Byre preparing the body for burial and believing (or more truthfully hoping) that the body belongs to her long missing sister. The stress and depression in the family is so painful as mother Mary Steenburgen refuses to "give up" hope and dad Bruce Davison is just helpless as the women in his life are all lost to him. While Byrne thinks the body belongs to her sister, she feel re-born and actually leaves her fetal position to date James Franco. However, soon all returns to "normal".

Mary Beth Hurt and Nick Searcy run a storage unit business next to their home and they spend their time together arguing and going emotionally numb. Searcy escapes for long drives and comes home with no explanation. A little detective work by Hurt has her proving her love and loyalty to a man who does not deserve it.

Marcia Gay Harden is the mother of the found dead girl. She goes searching for answers as to why her daughter ran away from home and how the daughter lived. The answers aren't pretty and most come from a hooker played by Kerry Washington. After much heart-break, the only sunshine in the film is discovered.

The films final chapter delivers the last piece of the puzzle as we see Brittany Murphy (the dead girl) and her struggles to make some type of life for herself. Again, painful to watch, but filled with emotional drama.

These stories are broken out here for a message. The acting of each of those named above is profound and never once over the top. Each story could be its own film, yet the brief glimpse provided into each life is just about all we can take. Ms. Moncrief has created a gem and a view into life's pain that crosses all genders, races and socio-economic boundaries. OK, I did smile once ... when I heard that Brittany Murphy's character has the last name KUTCHER!!

Brittany Murphy - 2006

[johnnyhbtvs27 · 6/10 · 21 April 2022]

The Dead Girl stars a lot of great actors in small roles from Josh Brolin to Piper Laurie, it's a great cast. The movie plays out in 5 different parts while being loosely connected. It doesn't all quite work but there is enough there to keep invested. The real kicker of the movie is Brittany Murphy playing 'The Dead Girl'. It's such a shame to watch this knowing what would become of Murphy just a couple of years later. The final shot of the movie showing Brittany Murphy's face full of optimism at the prospect of seeing her daughter while knowing she never will is quite haunting and 'You Are My Sunshine' playing over the credits, chilling.

Sorry, I have to disagree with the majority ...

[rohar2o · 4/10 · 21 May 2007]

.. of the other comments here. I thought that this film, albeit with fine actors all around, was just pretentious pap, especially after listening to the director, Karen Moncrieff, prattle on about how *amazing* everyone was on the commentary track, including her nanny. I love Toni Collette, I am always amazed by the performances that Brittany Murphy puts in (I rarely realize that it was her until the credits roll), but to me the sum of the parts is far less than the whole. The separate segments sparsely supported each other so while a Rashômon-, Pulp Fiction-, or even Go- style story-telling may have been what the director was shooting for, the difference between those films and this one was that those had a solid story line that held together throughout each view; you could see how the perception of reality changed with each story-teller. And, they were entertaining. In 'The Dead Girl', it was just a simple story strung chopped up into four segments, leaving the most important one for last. Good actors in a readily forgettable movie. A 4 out of 10, at best.

I don't write many reviews here, but just 'had' to chime in...

[arisdisc · 8/10 · 13 May 2011]

Does anyone really read the 'last' pages of these reviews? I'll take that chance, and simply say that I agree with most folks in here regarding this fine film.

Just got a chance to see it last night and in a word, this movie is simply: Outstanding.

The performances are flawless and there isn't a single scene that doesn't ring true. It grabs you emotionally and never lets go. The fine score is equally effective.

Do yourself a favor. Put this high on your list if you haven't seen it yet and do so very soon.

The Dead Girl

[rajdoctor · 7/10 · 15 June 2007]

Since Quentin Tarantino made Pulp Fiction, giving episodic formula a success – many directors have adopted that style.

Like many Hollywood movies, this too is a serial killer movie – but revolves only around death of a single girl. But please do not think this is a typical Hollywood story line. Karen Moncrieff, the Director of Dead Girl uses the five episodic storyline treatments to this film that makes this movie very unique and different.

Episode one: about a Stranger – a lady (Toni Collette – Little Miss Sunshine fame) who lives with a psycho mother – and she is the one who finds the dead girl's body and informs police.

Episode two: about the sister – a nurse (Rose Byrne) who while doing a post-mortem of the dead girl's body wrongly realizes that the dead girl is her lost sister Episode three: about a wife (Mary Beth Hurt) of the serial killer – who knows about the killings of girls by her husband, but still is so hopelessly attached to serving the husband Episode four: about the mother (Marcia Gay Harden) of the dead girl – who tries to bring back her grand – daughter from an orphanage Lastly, episode five: about the dead girl (Brittany Murphy) who plays a run–away lesbian prostitute mother, after sexual abuse by her step – father, who on her journey to wish her 3 year old daughter for birthday takes a hike on a car of this serial killer.

Karen Moncrieff – after her award winning Blue Car, gives another hard hitting, sensitive and truly classical syle of film-making, that could be watched again, only for the brilliance of characterization, content, photographic angles, close-up shots, lights, darkness and diffusion of light.

Good part of the story telling is that it does not use any of the Hollywood movie's clichés – especially the one liners (I dis-like them when over-used in every silly scene).

Everyone has acted according to the perfection of Karen's cut. The movie belongs to Karen – in its cinematography, musical and background score and sheer excellence of tight execution.

Hats off to this breed of emerging (this is just her second directed film) good Director – I hope she promises to deliver such good stuff again.

(Stars 7 out of 10)

Not a Thriller at all.....

[lordbier · 2/10 · 28 December 2008]

I went to the video store searching for a Thriller to watch with my girlfriend because we are both into thrillers and especially into "whodunit" ones. The description on the DVD box sounded interesting (it was the German description and I don't know the original so maybe the translation killed it). The abstract on the box narrated of 5 different plots that should lead to the riddles answer, one dead girl and a serial killer. Very interesting for me. In addition the movie collected 2 prices so I expected I nice story with good acting - A wrong expectation - The movie was the potency of lame. We almost fall asleep. This movie is so far away from a thriller like the middle east from peace. Its a drama and unfortunately a bad one. This movie is just very depressive without giving any answers. Its just a 90 min company of utterly sad women. OK there is an overall plot but this plot could have been told in 5 Minutes. The rest is sadness. After you watched this flick you will think: "what a waste of time!" It would be a torture for me to watch this again. Who ever gave this movie a price must have been on something I am searching for. Only the consistently good acting keeps the movie from the "awful" rating. I'll better watch a Micheal Dudikoff movie now. Then I'll get what I expect...